Rehoming call as Chesterfield faces a stray cat crisis

Chesterfield is facing a stray cat crisis - as charities struggle to cope with the number of unwanted moggies.

The town’s animal centres are facing unprecedented numbers of felines in their care.

RSPCA Chesterfield and North Derbyshire branch currently has 56 cats waiting to be rehomed and some are with foster carers. The branch is full to capacity so it can only take in cats which are classed as an emergency.

So far this year they have dealt with 244 cats - and 137 of those were strays.

Assistant manager, Gary Taylor said: “There has been a big increase in animals being adandoned. The stray cat situation has gone absolutely crazy and the amount we are taking in is a real problem.

“We are also seeing a lot of strays that are pregnant and injured cats which is a real drain on the branch.”

Diane Mottram, of Spire Vets in Chesterfield, said they had also seen an increase in unwanted pets and strays.

She added: “We do have quite a few being brought in to us.

“We check for microchips and then try to locate the owner. We do keep a few here if the charity’s can’t take them and try and rehome them but we are not a rehoming service.”

Diane said the rise could be due to the cost of keeping pets and some owners can no longer afford to keep their cats and are giving them up.

She added— that some owners can not afford vet bills and many cats are falling pregnant and having large number of kittens, because their owner failed to neuter them.